Q: Looking at your roster now, how much better are you now than you were two days ago?

HERMAN EDWARDS: “I think we’ve upgraded. I think what we’ve done is create competition within our football team with young players. I think you need to do that. Some positions we might have liked to have done a little bit better but the board didn’t dictate that. What we did was stay patient with our board and didn’t reach.

“When you start reaching because you need a position and bring players up too high you get the player’s expectations up too high and you eventually find out you shouldn’t have drafted them that high anyway. If you stick to your board – and there’s a lot that goes into the board and covers more than two weeks, it’s two years of a body of work – and have conviction you’ll be fine. Sometimes the players are there and sometimes they’re not. The board is a funny thing, but you don’t reach down two or three rounds to pick up a guy because you need a certain position. You don’t do that.

“The great thing about me is if you’re a productive player you’re going to play. If you’re not productive you’ll stand by me. That’s how it works. I’m about production and about players performing at a certain level. I played my whole career as I could get cut. I’ve lived my life that way.”

Q: How do you feel about your cornerback spot?

EDWARDS: “I believe we’ve got nine or ten guys and drafted one. We’ve got a starter who we know is a good football player and there are still a lot of things that can happen. I always say this: the team you see practicing today and next week in mini-camp won’t be the some team that lines up in September. For me, the process never ends and a lot of things can happen between now and September. Who the final 53 guys are I don’t know.”

CARL PETERSON: “We’ll always go ahead and look at an opportunity to help our football team if it makes sense. There is something called the cap and cash that has to make sense, too.

“Specific to the cornerback position, with seven picks we drafted three defensive backs, two safeties and a corner. Sure, we probably would have liked to have had two corners and a safety, but safety is a need position for us also because beyond our starters we don’t really have much experience if any at all.

“As Herm said and Bill knows, the draft is hard to predict. We made a decision with our first pick to go with what we thought would be the best football player on the defensive side for us. We hoped it would help our defensive backs because we think Tamba can create quarterbacks having to throw the ball a little sooner than they want. From that point until the fifth round, it just didn’t match in regards to a corner. But we’re very happy with Marcus Maxey. He’s been a starting cornerback for a very fine football team and played against strong competition. Every one of these players has a legitimate chance to come in and compete for a position and to make us better. That’s what the whole idea of the draft is. Whether they can make us better immediately or somewhere early in the 2006 season or halfway, time will tell.”

Q: If you go to camp with these corners are you OK with that?

PETERSON: “I am. We do have some veteran corners that we have signed. I know you don’t seem to like them, but Lenny Walls has lined up and played in this game against us. I frankly have a great deal of confidence (in Herm) specific to secondary and defense. He’s coached it a long time, understands it and will help us get better.”

“With our seven draft choices and where we’re picking in the back third of each round I’m very pleased with how it fell in place. I would share with you there was no debate, no arguments as each of the picks came up. It seemed to be the appropriate person as it came down. The proof will be if they come and they play and they play and help us win.”

Q: Talk about the last three players you took in the 6th and 7th round.

PETERSON: Tre’ Stallings, an offensive guard from the University of Mississippi, started 48 games out of 48 games in his four years. Our second sixth round pick was Jeff Webb, out of San Diego State. Jarrad Pace, the final pick out of UCLA, started 46 out of 49 games. All of these guys help us with needs, which is something you do address in the second day of the draft. We think all of them have a chance to make the football team and make us better.”

EDWARDS: “Stallings brings some toughness. He’s played a lot of football in his career and can play guard. You wonder why you draft offensive linemen, but Kansas City has always had the ability to develop young offensive linemen. You look at some of the linemen that have been developed through the years here. He’s a guy who we like because of his potential. He’s big, strong, physical and very smart. That’s something you look at when you draft offensive lineman. We didn’t want to get into the free agency bit and he was sitting there.

“Wide receiver Jeff Web I’ve watched over the last two or three years at San Diego State. He’s a big guy who can run. He ran 4.4 at the Scouting Combine. He’s 6'2" and caught a lot of balls at San Diego State. He understands the passing offense. He’s a big physical guy especially in the Red Zone. He can jump up and catch balls over guys. I’ve watched him and know him very well. I know a lot about him.

“Jarred Page is another big physical safety who never had spring ball because he played baseball at UCLA. He’s similar to (second round pick Bernard) Pollard and is big at 220 and almost 6'2". You like physical safeties. We’ve drafted two and filled the need at the offensive line and we got a receiver that can run down the field. At the second day you’re looking to fill some needs, but you’re also looking at athletic ability and potential and all these guys compete.”

BILL KUHARICH: “Like we did last year, we drafted a guy who is athletic with good feet, started at Mississippi as a tackle but who we project as a guard based on (offensive coordinator and former offensive line coach) Mike Solari. We’ve got (Will) Svitek over in Europe playing left tackle. It’s about taking big guys who have some ability and developing them.

“The receiver is a vertical threat deep. He caught a lot of balls at San Diego State in a wide open passing game. He’s a very physical guy and the one thing that stood out with him was his speed.

“The last guy, Jarrad Page, is another big physical safety who’s been a starter in 46 out of 49 games in the big arena.

“So, these three guys are excellent late picks. Once again, we stuck to the board and they were the highest at their positions. We weren’t going to reach down and pick somebody who may have had a specific skill and maybe that out-shown these guys. These guys were the best all-around when it came our turn to pick.”

banyon

04-30-2006, 06:43 PM

so...they didn't draft Maxey as a FS?

that sux.

FAX

04-30-2006, 07:00 PM

I always say this: the team you see practicing today and next week in mini-camp won’t be the some team that lines up in September. For me, the process never ends and a lot of things can happen between now and September. Who the final 53 guys are I don’t know.